Nick Kerdels, former NHL player for the Anaheim Ducks, died in a motorcycle accident in Nashville in the early hours of Saturday morning at the age of 29.
According to TMZ, Kerdiles died from his injuries in an accident around 3:30 a.m. Saturday morning. Reports indicate that Kerdiles collided with the side of the BMW. The driver of the other car immediately stopped and was taken to a local hospital.
Police say there were no signs of impairment from either Kerdilis or the driver of the other vehicle.
Kerdilis had posted a photo of himself on a motorcycle on his Instagram story on Saturday night, accompanying it with the caption “Night Rider.”
He was previously engaged to Savannah Chrisley, a former beauty queen and family member who was highlighted on the USA Network reality TV show “Chrisley Knows Best.”
Former NHL player Nick Kerdilis, 29, died in a motorcycle accident after posting this photo to his Instagram story on Friday night. He was taken to the hospital and died of his injuries
Kerdiles played seven full games with the Anaheim Ducks and recorded 199 career appearances in the AHL
Curdles was previously engaged to former beauty pageant queen and reality TV star Savannah Chrisley
Kerdiles and Chrisley started dating in November of 2017, about three years into the reality TV show.
The two got engaged on Christmas Eve 2018, but never married.
In September 2020, Chrisley announced the couple’s split, saying in an Instagram post: “There is no hate between us.”
“We have nothing but love, respect and admiration for each other, but it is time for us to move forward individually,” she wrote.
Savannah has starred in both the series ‘Knows Best’ as well as the series ‘Growing Up Chrisley’.
Both series were canceled when Savannah’s parents – Todd and Julie Chrisley were sentenced to twelve and seven years in prison respectively for tax evasion and bank fraud.
Chrisley and Kerdels first started dating each other in November of 2017
Kerdiles proposed to Savannah again on Christmas Eve in 2018 after dating for over a year
Chrisley announced in an Instagram post in September 2020 that the couple had split
Kerdiles was born and raised in Louisville, Texas, to a French father and a French-Canadian mother, then moved to France before eventually settling in California.
As a child, he participated in the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a team of kids from Los Angeles.
He has represented the United States in the National Hockey Team Development Program in several prestigious youth tournaments.
Kerdiles won a silver medal with the United States at the 2011 IIHF World Under-17 Championships before winning gold at the World Under-18 Championships later that year.
The United States won the gold medal at the same tournament the following year, with Curdles scoring the most points of any American.
In 2012, the Anaheim Ducks drafted Kerdiles in the second round with the 36th overall pick. He went on to attend the University of Wisconsin for two seasons, scoring 26 goals and 45 assists for 71 points in 60 collegiate games.
After those two seasons, he signed a three-year contract with the Ducks in 2014. He made his debut with the Norfolk Admirals of the AHL’s minor league in Anaheim – in the 2014 Calder Cup playoffs. He would go on to play for the San Diego Gulls when they became their new affiliate For Ducks.
Kerdiles made his NHL debut with Anaheim on February 22, 2017 against the Boston Bruins
After three seasons playing in the minors, Kerdiles made his NHL debut on February 22, 2017 against the Boston Bruins.
Kerdiles returned to the Gulls and played eight games in their short-lived Calder Cup playoff campaign.
But the Ducks called him back for four thrilling games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He was on the ice for Games 5 and 6 in the second round of the Western Conference against the Edmonton Oilers, a series that Anaheim would eventually win.
Kerdiles’ next two games came in the Western Conference Finals against the Nashville Predators. After pitching a blank in Game 5 of that series, he tallied his first and only NHL point in Game 6.
His pass behind the net to teammate Chris Wagner cut Nashville’s lead to 3-2. Unfortunately, Nashville won that game which meant they eliminated Anaheim and advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals.
Kerdiles would return to play in the NHL the following season for two games after signing a one-year extension.
Unfortunately, he failed to make enough of an impact to stay on the team and played his final game with Anaheim on October 15, 2017 against the Buffalo Sabres.
He was traded to the Winnipeg Jets on June 30, 2018. While he made three appearances with the AHL team – the Manitoba Moose – he did not play in the NHL again.
Kerdiles totaled seven games for the Ducks – including four games in the Stanley Cup playoffs
His last game came on October 13, 2018 in a 6-2 loss to the Belleville Senators.
Kerdiles finished his NHL career with seven games in the regular season and playoffs – earning one point.
In the AHL, he scored 47 goals and 60 assists for 107 regular season points in 181 regular season games.
He also scored seven goals and five assists for 12 points in 18 AHL playoff games.
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